What Good Coaching Sounds Like

Language that carries DEFINE–MODEL–PRACTISE–REFINE–REFLECT

Pages 1 and 2 explained why EBTD coaching works and how it drives improvement through the Deliberate Practice Model. This page shows what that looks like in real conversations, stage by stage.

Good coaching is not a separate skill or personality trait. It is the language leaders use to move deliberately through: DEFINE → MODEL → PRACTISE → REFINE → REFLECT.

Use this as a working reference: before, during, and after coaching conversations.
The aim is trust + clarity — improvement without blame, fear, or guesswork.

Where this fits in the EBTD system

Page 1: Coaching Principles

The conditions required for coaching to work: trust, clarity, dignity, support, and follow-up.

Open Page 1

Page 2: Coaching Drives Deliberate Practice

How coaching moves a leader and teacher through DEFINE–MODEL–PRACTISE–REFINE–REFLECT.

Open Page 2

Deliberate Practice Model

The improvement cycle itself, explained with examples built for Bangladesh.

Open model

If Page 1 is the conditions and Page 2 is the mechanism, this page is the usable layer: the words that make the cycle work in real schools.

Before the cycle begins: Open the conversation safely

This creates the conditions for DEFINE. Without psychological safety, DEFINE becomes defensive rather than focused.

Use language like

“Thanks for making time. I want us to focus on your practice and how I can support you.”
“This is about helping things work better, not judgement.”
“Before we start, how are things feeling at the moment?”

Avoid language like

“We need to talk.”
“There’s an issue we need to address.”
“This won’t take long.”

Start with care and purpose. If the opening feels like discipline, the rest of the cycle will not work.

DEFINE — Choose one small change that matters

Purpose: create clarity, remove guesswork, and focus improvement.

Use language like

“I want to focus on one small part of the lesson.”
“If we improved just one thing tomorrow, what would help students most?”
“What would success look like in the first two minutes?”

Avoid language like

“Your behaviour management needs work.”
“There are a lot of things to fix.”
“You need to improve overall.”

DEFINE reduces anxiety by replacing vague expectations with a clear, achievable focus.

A useful test: could someone else observe whether it happened? If not, it is not yet defined clearly enough.

MODEL — Make the change visible

Purpose: build confidence by showing what good practice looks like.

Use language like

“Let me show you what this could look like.”
“Watch how I start the lesson, then we’ll break it down.”
“Notice what happens when I pause here.”

Avoid language like

“You should already know how to do this.”
“Just try to copy what I do.”
“It’s hard to explain — you’ll get it.”

Seeing effective practice removes guesswork and builds confidence.

PRACTISE — Try it safely before real pressure

Purpose: make improvement possible without risk to authority or confidence.

Use language like

“Let’s practise just the first 30 seconds.”
“It might feel awkward — that’s normal.”
“I’ll be the student; you try the opening.”

Avoid language like

“Just try it in class tomorrow.”
“You’ll work it out as you go.”
“It’s not that difficult.”

Practice in low-stakes settings builds skill before authority or confidence are at risk.

If you want the change to show up in a real classroom, you usually need at least one short rehearsal first.

REFINE — Improve through tiny adjustments

Purpose: turn practice into progress.

Use language like

“One small tweak that could help is…”
“Try waiting two seconds longer before speaking.”
“Keep everything else the same and adjust just this.”

Avoid language like

“That still wasn’t right.”
“There’s a lot to improve here.”
“You need to be more consistent.”

Specific, limited feedback is far more effective than broad critique.

A simple rule that protects dignity: one change at a time, then repeat it.

REFLECT — Use it in real life and learn from it

Purpose: turn short-term change into habit.

Use language like

“When you tried it, what changed?”
“What felt easier this time?”
“What should we keep and what should we adjust next?”

Avoid language like

“Why didn’t this work?”
“You didn’t really change it.”
“We’ll review this later.”

Reflection consolidates learning and feeds directly into the next DEFINE.

Following up: Sustain the cycle without fear

Purpose: reinforce growth without surveillance.

Use language like

“I noticed you tried the routine — how did it feel?”
“What support would help you take the next step?”
“Shall we build on this next week?”

Avoid language like

“I didn’t see much improvement.”
“You haven’t fixed this yet.”
“I’ll be checking up on this.”

Follow-up framed as care strengthens culture. Framed as surveillance, it damages it.